


That One Green-Eyed Barista

by TheSeaSpider



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan, The Trials of Apollo - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - No Demigods (Percy Jackson), Bad Pick-Up Lines, Barista Percy Jackson, Baristas, Café, Cheesy, Cliche, Coffee, Coffee Shop, Cross-Posted on Wattpad, Customer Will Solace, M/M, Old Work, Pick-Up Lines, Science Pick-Up Lines, Slash, Trite - Freeform, Willercy, perwill, solackson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-13
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-13 12:53:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29402262
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheSeaSpider/pseuds/TheSeaSpider
Summary: Percy Jackson didn't have many costumers today. Which wasn't really surprising, considering the fact that it was a small coffee shop in lower Manhattan. Most people went to Starbucks or somewhere more popular.But not Will Solace. It was Spring Break and Will was visiting his dad, who just happened to live in Manhattan where he worked as a trauma surgeon. Will went to Med School, where he was following his father's footsteps in becoming a doctor. Will didn't have much to do, but when he was walking downtown and saw the old coffee shop he used to go to as a kid, he simply couldn't resist.So, Will Solace walked into that old coffee shop, unaware of the green-eyed barista that would change his life.
Relationships: Annabeth Chase & Percy Jackson, Percy Jackson/Will Solace, Rachel Elizabeth Dare & Percy Jackson, minor Jason Grace/Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano
Kudos: 24





	That One Green-Eyed Barista

It was a warm evening, and the coffee shop was slowly becoming more empty as the sun moved closer to the distant horizon. There were only a few people left in the cafe, and while Percy recognized some of them as regulars, he ignored them for the most part. Sometimes, when he was bored, he'd start up a conversation with a few of them. But today he wasn't really in the mood.

As Percy finished wiping down the counter, he looked up to see Rachel Dare, a customer who came in every couple days, wave to him and leave a tip. He smiled, put down the rag, and waved back.

As she walked out the door, Percy walked over to see the tip. Usually people didn't leave tips- considering it was a cafe- but Rachel always left something for him. He sighed, slipping the $10 into his pocket.

"Hey, Percy," a voice called from behind the counter. He turned around to see his long-time friend and co-worker, Annabeth Chase, hanging up her apron. "I'm going to head out a bit early. I've got a lot of work to do, sorry. There's hardly anyone here, so you'll be able to handle it on your own, right?"

"Of course." Percy grinned. After Annabeth took his shift last week, he owed her something. Plus, she was only supposed to work for another hour. It wasn't a big deal. It was a slow day, anyhow. "I'm happy to help, Wise Girl."

Annabeth lightly punched his shoulder. "Thanks, Percy. I knew I could count on you."

Anyone who didn't know the two of them personally might think they were flirting with each other, but those who knew them more personally would know that they didn't date- at least, not any more. It was only for a few months in High School, but the idea of dating each other made them uncomfortable both then and now- they were best friends, and that was it.

He sighed, grabbed his rag, and watched her walk out of the small cafe. Why did he have the feeling it was going to be a long night?

He glanced up at the clock. 2 hours till closing. _Time to get to wiping!_

He started at the table Rachel had been at- she never made much of a mess, so it would be easy to begin with. As he started wiping, someone left.

He moved on to the next table. A dirty napkin sat on the floor next to it. _Ew_. Percy gently picked it up, throwing it into the trash can. Another person leaves. He continues wiping the table.

Moving onto the next table, he waves to a regular, Jason Grace, as he leaves the shop with his new girlfriend, Reyna, who'd also taken to Jason's regular schedule for coming to the cafe. He wiped the tables once more. 

Circles, strokes. Remove the napkin holder so he could wipe under it. Push all the chairs in. Anything to cease his boredom. Wipe here, wipe there. It was a pattern, a rhythm. It was familiar. 

Something- someone- not familiar walked into the small coffee shop in lower Manhattan as Percy continued to wipe the tables. The non-familiar person wasn't a bad thing, though. He was around Percy's age, maybe a year or two younger, with blond hair and blue eyes.

Percy tossed the rag onto the counter, and went behind the register. He smiled- though it looked more like a smirk- to the customer. "So, what can I get for ya?"

The boys' blue eyes studied the pastries. "Hm, can I have a muffin and a large cafe mocha?"

"'Course," Percy said, ringing it up. "Can I get your name?"

The blue-eyed boy looked around the small cafe. "There's no one here."

"Can I have your number then?" Percy wasn't too sure why he asked that. Maybe as a joke. Maybe he was serious.

He laughed. It was a sweet, melodious laugh that only lasted for less than a minute. "Will," the boy with bright blue eyes said.

Percy went to grab the boys muffin, only to realize Will hadn't specified what he wanted. "What type of muffin?"

"Surprise me," Will said, winking.

Percy grabbed a blueberry muffin. _Like his eyes._ Then he went and made the mocha. What was his name again? Percy silently cursed his ADHD.

Percy turned to look at the boy for a moment, and knew what to write on the cup.

See, when Percy and Annabeth were younger, they were a bit obsessed with mythology. Greek mythology to be exact. One day, Annabeth had jokingly called him Poseidon due to his love of water, and Percy had retorted by calling her Athena. These nicknames eventually developed into different ones, but that wasn't the point.

The blond boy's smile reminded Percy of the sun- bright and happy. So he wrote the first name that came to mind on the cup. _Apollo._

"S'cuse me," Percy said to the boy. "That'll be $4.86."

The blond smiled and paid.

The green-eyed barista handed the boy his order.

The boy glanced at the name on his cup. "Apollo?"

"God of the sun," Percy said, grabbing the rag. "I forgot your name."

As Percy headed back to wiping tables, he heard the boy call after him, "I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours."

Percy looked back at the boy for a moment. "Percy."

"Will," the boy told him. "My name is Will." 

Percy smiled. Cute name for a cute boy. He still preferred Apollo, though.

Percy went back to wiping tables, humming to the rhythm of a song only he could hear.

Meanwhile, Will ate his muffin in silence. He didn't particularly like blueberry, but he wasn't going to be rude. He didn't mind that much anyways. He was too busy thinking about the green-eyed barista wiping tables.

"So, you live around here?" It took Will a minute to realize Percy was talking to him.

"I used to," Will answered, taking a sip of his coffee. "Not anymore. My dad still lives here, but I'm usually visiting my mom or off at school."

"Cool," Percy said. "I go to NYU. Marine science. What about you?"

"I'm studying to become a trauma surgeon," Will told the barista. "You live around here?"

"Yup," he responded. "A few blocks. I've got my own apartment."

"Nice," Will said, finishing his muffin. He looked at Percy for a moment, as if studying him. "I like your boots."

"Thanks, I stole them from a unicorn," Percy told the boy with a smile. He wasn't actually wearing boots. It would've been awkward if Percy hadn't understood.

Will let out a sigh of relief. 

The two sat in silence for a minute.

"You know Apollo was also the god of healing?" Percy asked, breaking the quiet that seemed to echo throughout the small building.

Will raised an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

"Yup." Percy tossed his rag onto a counter, walking over to the blue-eyed boy and pulling up a chair. "He was also the god of science."

Will briefly remembered Percy mentioning he was studying marine science. "Oh, really?"

"Yeah, and I'm honestly feeling some chemistry between us." Percy smirked- a crooked, awkward smirk that really wouldn't of worked on anyone else (in Will's opinion). 

Will tried not to laugh at the horrible joke. He took a drink of his coffee to stifle the laughter threatening to poor out his throat.

Silence echoed throughout the cafe. Will went back to drinking his coffee.

"Hello there, how do you _brew_?" Percy asked, plopping in a chair across from Will.

Will laughed his sweet, melodious laugh. "Are you flirting with me?"

Percy winked. "Only if you want me to be."

Will felt his face heat up. Usually he didn't flirt with people he just met, and they sure-as-hell didn't flirt with him, but this felt... right. "Sorry. My coffee hasn't kicked in yet, so I can't think of a charming pickup line."

"Well, we still have"- Percy looked at his watch- "a little less than an hour till closing, so maybe that'll give you enough time to think of one."

Will raised an eyebrow. "Are you asking me to stay with you?"

"If I get you another latte, on the house, will you?" Percy leaned back in his chair.

"I would've stayed without the offer, 'cause from what I've seen so far, I think I like you a latte," Will said, winking.

Percy laughed a sweet, deep laugh that sent shivers down Will's spine.

Will watched silently as Percy went back and made a latte. He got bored of this after a minute of watching- he blamed his ADHD for the boredom- so he took his phone out and texted his dad that he would be out later than planned. He was with a guy.

Not a minute after that, Percy walked over with (not one, but) two lattes. 

"I don't know if it's me or the coffee, but it's getting real steamy in here," Percy commented, putting his hands on the chair after setting the drinks down in front of Will.

Will raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Who's the other one for?"

Percy gasped in fake shock. "Isn't it obvious?"

Will stared at him blankly, but inside he was trying not to laugh. "Nope."

"Me, of course!" Percy exclaimed, plopping down in a chair across from Will. He rested his arms on the table. "So. What's a cutie like you doing in a place like this?"

"I could ask you the same thing," Will coyly responded.

"You're such a _tea_ se." Percy laughed his deep, beautiful laugh. "And I work here, hun. Isn't it obvious?" He gestured to his black apron.

Will blushed. He wanted to retort something back, but he knew that if he tried to talk, he'd become a stuttering mess, and end up saying something she couldn't control; that's what happened when he was nervous: words spewed out unchecked and over-explained, until someone stopped him. _Note to self,_ he thought, annoyed with himself. _Come up with better comebacks._

Will sipped his latte and the two men fell into a comfortable silence. The only sounds that could be heard were the occasional sips of coffee and the clock on the wall ticking by with every second.

Will hummed to himself before looking into his backpack- why did he bring it with him again?- and taking out a pen. He grabbed a spare napkin and jotted down his number. Percy had asked earlier, so why not give the cute barista what he wanted?

"Here," Will said, handing Percy his number.

"What's this?" Percy eyed the napkin warily.

"My number," Will told the green-eyed man. "You asked for it, right?"

Realization dawned on Percy's face. "Oh, right-- I--" He took a deep breath. "Thanks."

Will smiled at the barista's embarrassment. "You're welcome, cutie." 

Percy's face flushed more and only then did Will realize what he had called the man in front of him.

"Oh-- I'm sorry-- I didn't--" At Will's awkward attempt to apologize, Percy laughed his deep, beautiful laugh and cut Will off.

Now Will was the one flustered. 

"It's okay," Percy assured him with a wink. "You're cute and I like what I've seen so far. Sure, you can't flirt to save your life, but we all have our ups and downs. That's just what makes us all human at the end of the day."

Will looked into the barista's green eyes. "My therapist told me the exact same thing. Well, minus the thing about flirting."

Percy laughed- damn, this man laughed a lot. Was he high or something? Will doubted it, but he didn't mind Percy's laugh. It sent shivers down the soon-to-be doctor's spine- and they weren't the bad type, either.

They sat in silence for a few minutes. 

Though the silence was comfortable and seemed to loosen the awkwardness of the situation, it- like all good things- came to an end as Will's phone buzzed slightly.

Don't come home too late 

You still have hw to do :P

Will sheepishly sent back a quick reply.

Right!! I'm leaving now anyway thx for reminding me

"Sorry, I've got to go," Will said, standing up and taking out his wallet to grab $10. "Here you go. Sorry I couldn't stay longer, but I really hope I do see you again soon."

Percy winked playfully, pocketing the cash. "It's all good. I need to close up shop-" he ganced at the clock- "in a few minutes anyway, so I would've kicked you out eventually. I'll text you later and we can make plans."

Will said his goodbyes and left with a smile on his face. He decided he would come back again tomorrow, after he finished his... homework. 

Oh, shit, he forgot about that.

**Author's Note:**

> Oh my god, I started this like a year ago and didn't finish till now. Please don't judge the rushed ending or anything, this is an old work and I just wanted to get it out there.  
> I really appreciate feedback though. I skimmed over it for the most part, so if it's weird or you see something off-putting please tell me.  
> Thank you for reading my shit-fic and have a great day!!


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